Lectures, Readings, Discussions, & Forums - Week of December 3, 2018

Ann Arbor is an educated and educational community, providing an ample selection of brown bag lectures, seminars, and other colloquia. The Calendar covers events from authors on book signing tours to politicians on the stump.

You are cordially invited to attend Michigan Law School Problem Solving Initiative public capstone presentation by University of Michigan graduate and professional students entitled "Connected and Automated Vehicles: Preparing for a Mixed Fleet Environment."
South Hall room 1225, 701 S. State Street. Free. rickardj@umich.edu [map]

Reading by this acclaimed poet who read her "Praise Song for the Day" at President Obama's 2009 inauguration. Her most recent book, The Light of the World, is a memoir about her husband's death. Alexander also gives a lecture Dec. 6 at 5:30 p.m. in the UMMA Auditorium.
5:30 p.m., UMMA Apse, 525 S. State. Free. 764-6330. [map]

This award-winning local writer reads from and discusses Tazia and Gemma, her new novel that spans 1911-1961, moving forward in time with the story of an unwed pregnant Italian immigrant and then backward with the story of her daughter's search for her father. Writer Deepak Singh calls it a "moving story of racial and religious conflicts." Followed by a menorah lighting and sufganiyot (doughnuts).
7-8:30 p.m., JCC, 2935 Birch Hollow Dr. Free. Preregistration required. 971-0990. [map]

Laramie (WY)-based novelist Alyson Hagy is joined by local poet Keith Taylor in a discussion of her new novel, set in Appalachia after a civil war, about a woman who exchanges her letter-writing skills for tobacco, firewood, and other scarce resources. The story draws on traditional folktales and the history and culture of Appalachia to tell the story of the woman's harrowing journey to a crossroads in the midst of a post-apocalyptic breakdown of society. Signing.
7 p.m., Literati, 124 E. Washington. Free. 585-5567. [map]

All invited to join a discussion, in Spanish, of La Fruta del Borrachero, Ingrid Rojas Contreras's novel about a 7-year-old girl living in Bogotá during the drug violence of the 1990s.
7:30 p.m., Nicola's, Westgate shopping center. Free. 662-0600.

You are cordially invited to attend Michigan Law School Problem Solving Initiative public capstone presentation by University of Michigan graduate and professional students entitled "Concussion: Reducing Brain Injuries in Youth Football."
South Hall room 1020, 701 S. State Street. Free. rickardj@umich.eduevents.law.umich.edu [map]

This immensely popular Montreal mystery writer reads from Kingdom of the Blind, the latest in her detective Gamache series. Recently suspended from his job, Gamache looks into the personal mystery of a woman he's never met who named him as executor of her will. Meanwhile, drugs he let slip through his hands while investigating a cartel have made their way to Montreal, and he takes increasingly desperate measures to retrieve them.
6 p.m., EMU Pease Auditorium, 494 College Pl., Ypsilanti. Tickets $30.73 (includes a copy of the book) in advance at literatibookstore.com. 585-5567.

Panel discussion with local journalists TBA addressing the role of journalists in maintaining transparency and accountability in local government and institutions. Moderator: Michigan Daily editor-in-chief Alexa St. John.
7-8:30 p.m., AADL Downtown multipurpose rm. Free. 327-4200.

Lecture by this acclaimed poet who read her "Praise Song for the Day" at President Obama's 2009 inauguration. Her most recent book, The Light of the World, is a memoir about her husband's death.
5:30 p.m., UMMA Auditorium, 525 S. State. Free. 764-6330. [map]

Screening of the 2001 PBS documentary My American Girls, which chronicles a year in the life of an immigrant family from the Dominican Republic. Followed by discussion led by U-M history professor Jesse Hoffnung-Garskof.
6-8:30 p.m. AADL Downtown multipurpose rm., 343 S. Fifth Ave. Free. 327-4200. [map]

Local resident Carolyn Herrmann, mom of a trans teen, reads Shelagh McNicholas, Jazz Jennings, and Jessica Herthel's 2014 picture book based on Jennings' experience as a transgender child. Followed by discussion and Q&A with Carolyn and her son. All ages welcome.
6:30-8 p.m., Bookbound, 1729 Plymouth. Free. 369-4345. [map]

Veteran Chelsea storyteller and writer Steve Daut, a Second City Comedy Club grad, reads from his new collection of classic Mark Twain stories he adapted for modern audiences. The book also contains historical and performance notes for each tale.
7-8:30 p.m., Serendipity Books, 113 Middle, Chelsea. Free. 475-7148. [map]

The Director of the Michigan State University Museum will discuss the ethical responsibilities of university museums when local communities face crises and injustice. He will explore how collecting material culture and narratives associated with such challenges can build community bonds and promote conversations within an academic environment.
University of Michigan Museum of Art, 525 S. State Street. Free. ummsp@umich.eduhttp://ummsp.rackham.umich.edu/ [map]

U-M MFA student Talin Tahajian curates an evening of readings by U-M students and local poets in the Tristin Lowe installation at UMMA, which includes a large felt facsimile of the moon.
5 p.m., UMMA Stenn Family Gallery, 525 S. State. Free. 764-0395. [map]

Karen Chalmer will provide an understanding of what the Threshold Singers is and what they do.The Threshold Singers of Ann Arbor, a chapter of The Threshold Choir, honor the ancient tradition of women singing at the bedsides of people who are struggling, some with living, some with dying. The voice, as the original human instrument, is a true and gracious vehicle for compassion and comfort. When invited - and without charge - they visit in small groups, welcoming families and caregivers to join us in song or simply to be quietly present.
First Congregational Church, 608 E. William St. Free. office@fccannarbor.orgfccannarbor.org, http://thresholdofannarbor.org/ [map]

All invited to join a discussion of the first in C.M. Gleason's historical mystery series that revolves around a young investigator dispatched by the president.
4:30 p.m., Nicola's Books, Westgate shopping center. Free. 769-2149.